Project Description
Catalyst is an app that enhances an artist's creative process through the power of AI
Catalyst is an innovative app that empowers artists by integrating openAI's API to generate unique and creative prompts, fostering inspiration and motivation for artistic creation. Our mission is to preserve the magic of artistic generation by placing it in the hands of creators, ensuring that technology enhances rather than overshadows the creative process. The backend developed a RESTful API and used user interactions to parameterize prompts sent to openAI's API. Users make selections tailored to different artistic mediums, yielding over 7000 personalized prompt combinations. After hitting the generate button, the backend processes user choices, queries the AI model, and refines prompts to maintain accuracy. The temperature parameter controls creativity, ensuring desired results. The Create page, built using React, offers dynamic tools like Stopwatch and Pomodoro Timers, along with a Notebook for jotting down insights. This curated workspace enhances an artist's studio experience, centralizing tools for diverse creative processes. The Lexicon feature redefines traditional dictionaries. Users can search prompt words for meanings, examples, jokes, and even associated colors. Unlike the Generate feature, Lexicon enables input autonomy and contextualizes prompts. The app's aesthetic, designed with care and minimalism, offers a blank canvas for imagination. Tailwind CSS provides flexibility for responsive design and fluid user experience. UI considerations utilize React for step-by-step parameter selection, enhancing user flow and instruction. A redesigned nav bar grants autonomy in navigating between parameter categories. Muse, our custom loading animation, adds charm to the app with captivating animations. Catalyst's essence lies in bridging artistic innovation and AI technology, enabling creators to break through creative barriers while maintaining the vital human touch. Our app embraces the harmony between technological advancement and individual artistic expression, providing the perfect balance of innovation and creativity.
The Team
I am an artist, designer, developer and improviser with a strong design orientation and a keen eye for detail. My background includes a Masters in Fine Arts in improvisational performance from Smith College, a decade of professional experience as a dancer and photographer specializing in portraiture and archival documentation, and a passion for on-the-spot decision-making in various creative contexts, from live improvised performances to stage management and lighting design. In the Catalyst project, I played a pivotal role as the front-end developer, leveraging my design expertise and React skills to bring the app to life. Drawing inspiration from the concept of a blank canvas for artistic expression, I meticulously crafted the app's aesthetic using Tailwind CSS. My goal was to create a visually appealing and user-friendly interface that resonated with the essence of artistic innovation and creativity. I led the design and implementation of the "Create" page, where my focus was on providing a dynamic workspace akin to an artist's studio. Through React, I developed tools like Stopwatch and Pomodoro Timers, enriching the user experience and supporting various creative processes. The Notebook feature, central to this workspace, allowed artists to jot down their thoughts and ideas, further enhancing their creative journey. Additionally, I addressed UI considerations with Teddy, using React to enable step-by-step parameter selection. I designed the navigation bar to empower users with the freedom to navigate between parameter categories, enhancing user autonomy and improving overall usability.
Before Momentum I worked for 8 years as a Physical Therapist. My area of expertise was oncology and I spent much of my career helping people going through cancer and cancer treatments. As a former Physical Therapist, I’m a compassionate and patient person. I’m also a quick learner and easily adapt to any situation, even a very stressful one. I enjoyed being a physical therapist, and wanted to use the puzzle and problem solving parts of my brain in a new and exciting way. I’m eager to continue to enhance my technical skills and knowledge and stay up to date with new and emerging technologies. As the primary backend developer, I played a crucial role in building the RESTful API using Django Rest Framework. Being part of a project that utilized artificial intelligence, I had the opportunity to work with OpenAI's API. This integration allowed me to leverage the capabilities of OpenAI's language models, enabling advanced natural language processing features in our project. As the primary backend developer, I engaged in AI prompt testing, refining and iterating on prompts to ensure accurate and contextually relevant responses from OpenAI's GPT-3.5 model. My expertise in parameterization allowed us to fine-tune the model's behavior, adjusting settings like temperature to achieve the desired response style, length, and user experience.
Hello my name is Theodore Thibodeau, I began my career as a General Manager of several sensory deprivation float spas in Georgia and North Carolina. During my time with True REST Charlotte, I was responsible for managing people and budgets, organizing marketing events, and reaching out to large corporations to negotiate spa contracts. I made deals with the likes of ESPN, UNC Charlotte’s Football program, Charlotte FC, and the Carolina Panthers. After years of working with the Panthers, they purchased their own float tank and hired me as an independent consultant. Towards the end of my time in the spa industry, I began to realize I wanted a new challenge and after seeing the success of many of my friends in the tech industry, I decided to make the move and start a coding bootcamp. Momentum has provided me with the tools to build my own solutions, giving me the confidence to tackle any problem as a full stack software engineer. As a front-end software engineer on the project, my role extended beyond just working with API calls. I collaborated closely with the design and product teams to create a user-friendly interface that seamlessly integrated with OpenAI's API. The parameterization process was a critical aspect of the project, and I took the lead in crafting a dynamic and intuitive user interface that guided users through the setup process effortlessly. To ensure a smooth user experience, I conducted extensive research on best practices and design patterns to apply when implementing the parameterization process. One of the unique features of our project was the development of the Lexicon, a sophisticated dictionary that leveraged OpenAI's API capabilities. In collaboration with the content team, I played a major role in designing and implementing the Lexicon's functionality. It allowed users to access a comprehensive database of terms and their meanings, enhancing the contextual understanding of the content generated by OpenAI's AI models. Throughout the project's lifecycle, I remained adaptable to changing requirements and user feedback, iterating on the user interface and features to continuously improve the overall user experience. As a front-end software engineer, my passion for creating impactful and user-centric applications was a driving force behind the project's success, ultimately leading to widespread adoption and positive user feedback.